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Kevin Michael Vance
Writer - Portland, Oregon
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Title: HALF BAD, THE BASTARD SON & THE DEVIL HIMSELF
Director: multiple directors
Year: 2022
Reviewed: September 18, 2023
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Rice Cake-Lowest Rating |
[Rating Definitions]
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I've been wanting, for whatever twisted reason, to watch a fantasy show. I started out with the prequel to Game of Thrones: House of the Dragon. But witnessing the lack of production design, the fact that they did not even write a different theme song, and the overwhelming choice to change multiple actors after episode 5 or 6, I gave it up. After falling in love with Milly Alcock's performance as Princess Rhaenyra, and then seeing her arbitrarily replaced by an actress who neither looked, sounded, or acted like her... I was through.
Thus, I decided to give Half Bad a shot. It's billed as a "violent fantasy", which is decidedly in my darkly-lit, and heavily-shadowed "wheel house". From the get-go, I had problems with the series. (Now, I have not read the books... so, this review is based solely on the Netflix series.) The production value is very low, very sub-par. It would appear that they spent all their money on heavy CGI gore effects. But all of that paled to the poor writing. First we have a protagonist that is utterly and completely reactive. He does not make the action, he does not push the plot forward, he simply "reacts" to whatever is happening around him. I began to catch onto this after a few episodes, and once I saw it, it really began to bother me. Then we have the premise that the aforementioned protagonist's character is the son of an evil witch, his father, and prophesized to kill his father. So, the "good" witches what do they do? They need him to grow strong and powerful so he will fulfill the prophecy. So what do they do? They torture and imprison him. Because that is the rational thing to do with the person who is to become the savior of your society... treat them like complete garbage. And then you have an antagonist who is the least intimidating actor I've seen since Gilbert Grape, and who poorly growls and huffs his way into the ultimate power, only to be beaten fairly handedly by his own daughter.
But for, a creepy and sexy performance by Roisin Murphy, the entire series feels vacuous and cheap. Granted, I hate-watched it tell the end.
Half Bad, The Bastard Son & the Devil Himself receives my dreaded RICE CAKE review.
(If you're looking for a fun, violent fantasy series, as was I, start with Netflix's The Order. Five episodes in and it's already a hundred times better than Half Bad, not to mention there's a Firefly alumni- the incredible, adorable, beautiful, and sexy Jewel Staite. Who is killing it, I might ad, as a chain-smoking naughty witch.)
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